Business News Blog

How to Market Your Beauty Business on Instagram

One billion people use Instagram, and at least 72 percent of those people have purchased a product they saw on Instagram, according to Business Insider.

That means you need to be marketing your business, whether you’re selling a service, cosmetics, or even private label skin care, on Instagram.

Here are a few tips to get you started:

Optimize your profile

First, make sure your business profile is fully-optimized.

That means checking your handle and profile photo to make sure they’re engaging and instantly recognizable. Avoid using too many special characters, like hyphens. Next, create a short and sweet bio that gets your personal message across and a link to your business website. Add a geotag so you show up in more local searches.

Finally, utilize Instagram’s new “Highlights” feature to show-off your knowledge in different fields. If you’re a skincare business for example, you can have one highlight for facials, one for testimonies, one for skin care tips, and whatever else you believe you can offer valuable insight to.

Make your products as photogenic as possible

When it comes to Instagram feeds, your photo must stand out. Otherwise, you and your products will disappear into a blur as users scroll quickly by it.

Try and decide what kind of photos would best align with your brand. Do you want your feed to be full of bright, punchy images? Or would soothing neutrals better represent your business?

Once you’ve decided, ensure each photo you post has a similar feel so that users can instantly recognize one of your posts.

Whatever central theme you decide to go with, have fun with the photos. Instagram is an upbeat platform where you can show off your business in creative ways. Adding a personal touch to your photos can establish your business as a fun and innovative company that will attract the dominantly young demographic that uses Instagram.

Reach a larger group than just those who follow you

While you should be working to attract those who already follow you, Instagram’s “Explore” feature makes it easier than ever to market to those who don’t know about your business yet. Adding a geotag to posts, as well as popular and relevant hashtags can help users that don’t follow you find your products.

Just be sure not to overload your posts with unnecessary hashtags or post numerous times a day — you could end up detracting your already loyal followers.

Boost your engagement

Boosting your engagement — or likelihood that people comment on, like or share your posts — is crucial to showing up higher in Instagram users’ feeds. You can do so using a few different methods.

First, post content people are sure to engage with. Make sure it’s appealing, relevant and on-brand. Second, ask your followers to engage with you directly. Don’t beg for likes or shares, but ask if they have any questions for you or what their favorite product is.

Study the data

Once you’ve tried all of the above, take a look at your Instagram insights and determine what does and doesn’t work. Every business is different, and every business has follower to expect different things on social media. Look at which posts got the most likes, comments and link shares and figure out how to recreate those in new ways. Social media is an evolving industry, and you need to be ready to grow with it.